Israel strikes Lebanon in response to cross-border rocket fire

22/3/2025 17:11

Israeli artillery fire and airstrikes hit southern Lebanon on Saturday after Israel said it had intercepted rockets fired from across the border, threatening a shaky truce that ended a year-long war between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.



That conflict marked the deadliest spillover of the Gaza war, rumbling across the border for months before escalating into a blistering Israeli offensive that wiped out Hezbollah's top commanders, many of its fighters and much of its arsenal.



The Israeli military said earlier it intercepted three rockets launched from a Lebanese district approximately 6 km (4 miles) north of the border, the first cross-border launch since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in November ended the fighting.



Israel's Army Radio said the military was returning artillery fire. Lebanon's state news agency said Israeli artillery hit two towns in southern Lebanon and airstrikes hit three other towns closer to the border.



Under the ceasefire deal, Hezbollah was to have no weapons in southern Lebanon, Israeli troops were to withdraw from the region, and Lebanese troops were to deploy to the area.